Late late Cuckoo

Any date in September would be notable to see a Cuckoo in UK, 26th September is exceptional. This youngster flew into a window in Kelk and became the other kind of 'late'. Even that seems a very strange occurrence. Poor thing!

One wonders if it was a local bird that had been hanging around longer than normal, or from much further away and had got a bit lost finding Africa.

A round up of my September visit is on its way...

August Two

This'll have to be quick...

August 15-16th

Greylag Goose - 240 near Gransmoor
Gadwall - 10
Teal - 3
Red-legged Partridge - 2
Little Grebe - 8
Cormorant - 2
Grey Heron - 21 including 15 together (see photo)
Buzzard - up to 20
Kestrel - 6
Hobby - 2
Golden Plover - flock of 30
Lapwing - flock of 120
Greenshank - 1 at Gembling
Green Sandpiper - 3
Stock Dove - flock of 12
Turtle Dove - 1 at Foston is the first since 2010
Swift - 17
Yellow Wagtail - 2 juveniles along Kelk Beck
Mistle Thrush - 8 near Wansford
'warblers' - noticeably few (poor season? left already?)
Long-tailed Tit - 50+ in two flocks
Jay - 1 at Harpham was an early autumn surprise
House Sparrow - flock of 90+ Little Kelk

Greenshank - just scarce enough to be a treat but just about regular enough to appear every year.

Greylag Geese overhead. Once again a post-breeding flock has been using fields near Gransmoor.

What's the group name for herons? I dunno, maybe a 'conference of herons'. An odd sight, though.

Two new for the year list...

101 Greenshank
102 Turtle Dove

August One

Slacking off again... we're well in to September and I haven't mentioned August yet. Here's a few non-birdy pictures while I get myself together.

#1 - Gatekeeper. Not particularly common but probably overlooked.

#2 - Painted Lady. I haven't seen one of these locally for 2-3 years.















#3 - Small Skipper. Fairly common in the area.















#4 - Migrant Hawker. If you see a big dragonfly in the area it's most likely one of these.

#5 - Puffball mushroom. Size of a football!!!

Back soon...